Panasonic Industry to Invest ¥92 Billion in AI Component Capacity

Panasonic Industry announced on October 30, 2026, in Japan local time, that it would invest 920 billion yen, about CNY 38.81 billion at the current exchange rate, into its artificial intelligence-related business. According to IT之家 on November 3, the funds are directed mainly toward two component capacity expansions and one R&D facility. On MEGTRON multilayer substrate materials, in addition to two plants scheduled to begin operating in December 2026 and November 2027, Panasonic Industry will build new plants in Suzhou, China and in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Thailand, with investments of 300 billion yen and 370 billion yen respectively, expected to start operating in August 2028 and April 2029. On SP-Cap conductive polymer aluminum electrolytic capacitors, the company plans to invest a combined roughly 170 billion yen at its Uji plant in Kyoto, Japan and its Batam plant in Indonesia, in order to meet rising medium- to long-term demand for this capacitor type from AI server components such as GPUs. Separately, Panasonic Industry intends to construct a new R&D building at its production base in Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture, Japan, dedicated to developing next-generation semiconductor packaging materials, at a cost of about 80 billion yen. Summing the listed items, the announced investment amounts to 920 billion yen. The earliest operating milestones for the new plants fall in December 2026 and November 2027, while the later ones are set for August 2028 and April 2029.